TWO WAY GATE VALVE AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING SYSTEM HAVING THE SAME

• US 20130153806A1
• Filed: 12/17/2012
• Published: 06/20/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Npces Company Limited
• Original Assignee: New Power Plasma Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: CHOI, Dae-Kyu
• Granted Patent: US 9,151,393 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 251/319
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 3/00 Gate valves or sliding valves, i.e. cut-off apparatus with closing members having a sliding movement along the seat for opening and closing F16K5/00 takes precedence; in barrages or weirs E02B8/04
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67126 Apparatus for sealing, encapsulating, glassing, decapsulating or the like processes H01L23/02, H01L23/28

Abstract

A two way gate valve includes a valve chamber having a first entrance coupled with a first chamber, a second entrance coupled with a second chamber, and an openable and closable chamber cover; a moving module having a first sealing plate for sealing the first entrance, a second sealing plate for sealing the second entrance, and a moving module body to which the first and the second sealing plates are mounted; a push-pull module having a push-pull module body coupled with the moving module body such that the moving module body can linearly move, a first operating body for moving the moving module in a first entrance direction such that the first sealing plate seals the first entrance, and a second operating body for moving the moving module in a second entrance direction such that the second sealing plate seals the second entrance.

Claims

1. A two way gate valve comprising:

a valve chamber having a first entrance coupled with a first chamber, a second entrance coupled with a second chamber, and an openable and closable chamber cover;

a moving module having a first sealing plate for sealing the first entrance, a second sealing plate for sealing the second entrance, and a moving module body to which the first and the second sealing plates are mounted;

a push-pull module having a push-pull module body coupled with the moving module body such that the moving module body can linearly move, a first operating body for moving the moving module in a first entrance direction such that the first sealing plate seals the first entrance, and a second operating body for moving the moving module in a second entrance direction such that the second sealing plate seals the second entrance;

a first driving means for driving the first operating body;

a second driving means for driving the second operating body; and

a third driving means for moving the push-pull module between an operation position and a standby position,

wherein, when the push-pull module is moved to the operation position by the third driving means, the first operating body is operated by the first driving means or the second operating body is operated by the second driving means, so that one of the first entrance and the second entrance is selectively sealed.

2. The two way gate valve according to claim 1, wherein the first operating body comprises a rotating axis rotatably coupled with the push-pull module body and a push bar having a moving axis connected to the first driving means, and, when the first driving means moves the moving axis, the push bar pushes and moves the moving module in the first entrance direction while rotating on the rotating axis, so that the first sealing plate seals the first entrance.

3. The two way gate valve according to claim 1, wherein the first driving means comprises a first shaft coupled with the first operating body and a first cylinder for driving the first shaft, the second driving means comprises a second shaft coupled with the second operating body and a second cylinder for driving the second shaft, and the third driving means comprises a third shaft coupled with the push-pull module and a third cylinder for driving the third shaft.

4. The two way gate valve according to claim 3, wherein the first to the third cylinders correspond to one of a hydraulically driven cylinder, a pneumatically driven cylinder, and a solenoid-driven cylinder.

5. The two way gate valve according to claim 1, further comprising a bellows for vacuum-sealing the first to third driving means within the valve chamber.

6. The two way gate valve according to claim 1, wherein the push-pull module comprises an elastic member for returning the moving module body to an original position after the moving module body is operated by the first operating body or the second operating body.

7. The two way gate valve according to claim 1, further comprising one or more rollers provided between the push-pull module and the moving module.

8. A substrate processing system comprising:

a first chamber;

a second chamber;

a valve chamber having a first entrance coupled with the first chamber, a second entrance coupled with the second chamber, and an openable and closable chamber cover;

a moving module having a first sealing plate for sealing the first entrance, a sealing plate for sealing the second entrance, and a moving module body to which the first and second sealing plates are mounted;

a push-pull module having a push-pull module body coupled with the moving module body such that the moving module body can linearly move, a first operating body for moving the moving module in a first entrance direction such that the first sealing plate seals the first entrance, and a second operating body for moving the moving module in a second entrance direction such that the second sealing plate seals the second entrance;

a first driving means for driving the first operating body;

a second driving means for driving the second operating body; and

a third driving means for moving the push-pull module between an operation position and a standby position,

wherein, when the push-pull module is moved to the operation position by the third driving means, the first operating body is operated by the first driving means or the second operating body is operated by the second driving means, so that one of the first entrance and the second entrance is selectively sealed.

9. The substrate processing system according to claim 8, wherein the first chamber corresponds to a transfer chamber having a transfer apparatus for transferring a substrate to be processed, and the second chamber corresponds to a process chamber for vacuum-processing a substrate to be processed.

10. The substrate processing system according to claim 9, wherein the transfer chamber corresponds to one of an atmospheric pressure chamber and a vacuum chamber.

11. The substrate processing system according to claim 8, wherein the first and second chambers are process chambers for vacuum-processing a substrate to be processed.

12. The substrate processing system according to claim 8, wherein the first chamber corresponds to a transfer chamber having a transfer apparatus for transferring a substrate to be processed, and the second chamber corresponds to a loadlock chamber for exchanging a substrate to be processed.